Grist has recently had a good series on bees, both domestic and wild. The current situation would seem to be not quite as dire as alarmists sometimes suggest. Colony collapse, for example, is past its peak rate this time. On the other hand, the stresses on bees seem to be caused by a complex mixture of factors, some of which are better understood than others.
Here's the story on wild bees, with links in the first paragraph which will take you to previous articles in the series. http://grist.org/food/heres-the-real-thing-killing-bees-us/
After reading this, I want to follow more of the links to the various studies. But I also found myself asking what can I do, as a producer and consumer?
It seems like a no brainer to purchase foods that are grown organically or pesticide free whenever that choice is possible. But perhaps the most important thing any of us can do who have access to a little land - or a lot, for that matter - is to preserve or create good bee habitat. Plant those plants that attract bees and other pollinators. When planting, make sure seeds are untreated, and choose starts for transplanting that are grown organically; that way, we won't be introducing toxins into the environment as a by-product of trying to do a good thing.
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